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HOPE FROM HORROR
Mum heartbroken by five miscarriages raises £3k on TikTok to fund IVF – and will let followers pick baby’s name
A COUPLE who were left heartbroken after suffering five miscarriages have managed to raise the money for IVF - by creating videos on TikTok.
Mark and Lucy Brown spent £15,000 on IVF treatment after having their son sixteen years ago, and struggled to conceive.
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Hairdresser Lucy, 41, from Hambleton, North Yorkshire, suffered from eclampsia during her first pregnancy and as a result was sterilised after giving birth to Sonny in 2004.
The couple began trying for another child in 2017, after getting the sterilization reversed, but were devastated after going through five miscarriages and one ectopic pregnancy.
Mark, who set up his own inflatable party hire business before the pandemic hit, set up his as a last chance for them to raise the money for IVF.
Starting in the first lockdown last year, he began creating content for the social media platform and has managed to raise £3,000 from his creator fund, which pays people for every 1,000 views they get on a video.
Speaking to the Sun Mark said: “It’s been a really horrific time for the both of us to go through this. The latest miscarriage was in September last year, and Lucy was three weeks pregnant.
“One of our worst experiences was in 2018, we had been told we were pregnant with twins just before we went on holiday to Tenerife.
“Doctors told us that it was safe for us to travel, but when Lucy was celebrating her birthday out there she suffered another miscarriage.
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“When we were able to return home the doctor told us that there was still one sac, so one child had survived, and we were so excited.
“But then we had the devastating news that it was empty. We have been trying for four years and this is really our last chance.
“TikTok was very much the last chance for us to achieve the dream of us having another child, a brother or sister for Sonny.
“We were absolutely blown away that we were able to make money from this, I have had a few viral videos but we never thought that it would ever get to this point where we had enough to pay for the IVF.
“People who have been sharing my videos and enjoying them have been so amazing, I haven’t been asking anyone for money. I would never do that.
“It's mostly been raised by the views that I have on TikTok, but some people have wanted to donate to our cause and we are so grateful.”
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The 35-year-old created his TikTok account, called Right Guys Aldi Reviews, after being told about the creator fund by a friend.
He then began to make viral videos where he reviews various food products from Aldi and other stores, as well as his own spin on recipes and has gained 276,000 followers on the app.
Mark added: “We will be giving our followers the chance to suggest names for our child, obviously if everything goes well.
“We have been in contact with the fertility clinic, who organised for Lucy to get her jab, so we have to wait three months before starting the process.
“But we are just so grateful to everyone who has supported us on TikTok, and within reason, will be allowing people to suggest names for the baby - a real social media child!.
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“Once our dream comes true we just want to help others achieve theirs, and want to try to do this through TIkTok too.”
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